- Name:
- Jason Burdett
- Birth Date:
- Nov. 8, 1977
- Hometown:
- Arkport, N.Y.
- Position:
- Crew Chief - No. 9 Chevrolet
Jason Burdett enters his ninth season as crew chief for JR Motorsports in 2023, and it will be the first one with the No. 9 team and driver Brandon Jones. Burdett moves to the No. 9 after a successful eight years with veteran driver Justin Allgaier. Through his first eight years with JRM, Burdett compiled 18 wins, 110 top fives and 183 top 10s. The 18 victories make Burdett the winningest crew chief in JRM history, and he has also led his team to the Championship 4 in five of the last seven seasons.
Looking to build off of a strong 2021 season, the 45-year-old Burdett and the No. 7 team entered 2022 with four consecutive top-10 finishes and placed within the top three in the championship standings. After a five-race stretch with a finish no better than 14th, Burdett and the No. 7 team looked to turn their luck around at two of their strongest tracks, Dover Motor Speedway and Darlington Raceway. Leading 67 laps at Dover, the No. 7 team finished in the runner-up position before heading to Darlington where they secured their first win of the season. Over the course of the 12 races, including Dover and Darington, the No. 7 team went on a tear by scoring two additional wins at Nashville Superspeedway and New Hampshire Motor Speedway, eight top fives and 11 top 10s. The No. 7 team went on to finish third in the championship standings, its best finish since 2020.
The No. 7 team entered 2021 on a high note, but incidents in three of the opening five events saw the team mired in the point standings. Undeterred by the early struggles, Burdett helped guide Allgaier and the No. 7 team to two victories over the ensuing four events at Atlanta Motor Speedway and Darlington. Those wins launched an impressive stretch that saw the Burdett-led team finish inside the top 10 in 20 of the final 24 races and finish no worse than 12th from the month of June on. That model of consistently thrust Allgaier and Burdett into the NXS Playoffs for the sixth consecutive season and into the Round of 8.
Looking to advance into the Championship 4, Burdett and Allgaier gave it their all over the three races in the Round of 8, earning two top fives and three top 10s. However, the duo fell just one position short of making it into the final round. Despite not advancing, Burdett and Allgaier ended the 2021 season a strong fifth in points, with two wins, 16 top-five and 24 top-10 finishes.
The 2020 season was full of ups and downs for Burdett and the No. 7 team, but they persevered, leading JRM with three victories on the season. Under Burdett’s leadership, the team won at Dover International Speedway and swept the weekend at Richmond Raceway, giving them positive momentum as they charged into the playoffs for the fifth straight season. Despite a dose of bad luck during the playoffs, the team managed to advance to the Championship 4. With a strong record at Phoenix Raceway, Burdett and Allgaier headed into the finale as one of the favorites to win the championship. Allgaier led 76 laps and was in the mix at the end of the race, bringing home a fifth-place finish and ending the year second in the NXS championship standings, a career-best for both Allgaier and Burdett.
In 2019, Burdett kept morale up through a frustrating first half of the season where the team hit a string of bad luck after coming close to winning several times. Then, during mid-summer, the team hit its stride, putting together 16 consecutive top-10 finishes. During the playoffs, Burdett and the No. 7 team were the most consistent team in the garage, earning an average finish of 3.6 through the first six races. In the penultimate race of the year, Burdett led Allgaier and the team to their first victory of the season at Phoenix giving them a chance to compete for the title at Homestead-Miami Speedway the following week where they ultimately ended the season fourth in the standings.
The year 2018 brought tremendous success for the No. 7 team. In their third season together, Burdett and Allgaier earned an impressive five wins, which came at Dover International Speedway, Iowa Speedway, Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, Road America and the historic Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The duo also captured the regular-season championship that led to a solid run in the NXS Playoffs, but left them short of the overall title.
In 2017, Burdett guided Allgaier to his first multi-win season, with the team capturing victories at Phoenix in the spring and Chicagoland Speedway. The wins locked Allgaier and the No. 7 team into the NXS Playoffs. Advancing to the Championship 4 for the season finale at Homestead, the No. 7 claimed third in the standings.
His sophomore year as crew chief in 2016 and first season with Allgaier, saw impressive stats with 13 top-five and 27 top-10 finishes in 33 races and a spot in the Championship 4 in the inaugural NXS Playoffs. With the championship coming down to a tense final restart at Homestead, the No. 7 ultimately ended the season third in the standings, just five points shy of earning the title.
In his first year with JR Motorsports’ No. 7 team, Burdett earned two wins with driver Regan Smith and finished just 22 points behind the 2015 NXS champion.
Being part of a title-contending team is nothing new to Burdett. He’s been a member of two NASCAR Cup Series championship teams, most recently with Hendrick Motorsports and driver Jeff Gordon in 2001. Two years earlier, Burdett was part of the Robert Yates Racing team that won the title with Dale Jarrett.
A native of Arkport, N.Y., Burdett’s racing journey began with several local teams around the Watkins Glen area. In 1998, he transitioned to North Carolina and joined Robert Yates Racing with driver Dale Jarrett. A year later, he helped Jarrett’s team to the title as a tire specialist.
A move to Hendrick Motorsports followed, and in 2001 Burdett earned a second championship with driver Jeff Gordon. In 2007, Burdett joined Michael Waltrip Racing, reuniting with Jarrett and serving as crew chief of the No. 44 team in the latter half of the season. It was there he honed his skills at the top level of NASCAR competition and leveraged the experience into a return to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. He excelled as car chief on the No. 24 team from 2008-10 before moving over to Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s No. 88 team from 2011-14.